Chris’s Camera and Photographs
Symbol Analysis

McCandless ruins his first camera by burying it in the desert, signaling his youthful foolishness. Chris’s second camera is found among his remains with five rolls of film. The pictures developed show a skinny, but happy young man, who seems to have found peace. They symbolize Chris’s acquisition of wisdom and self-knowledge through his adventures.

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Chris’s Camera and Photographs Symbol Timeline in Into the Wild

The timeline below shows where the symbol Chris’s Camera and Photographs appears in Into the Wild. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Chapter 2 - The Stampede Trail

...Killian also happens on the scene and radios for troopers to recover the body. A camera with five rolls of exposed film, the SOS note, and a diary, written on the...
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...Chris signed the SOS note with his full name and took many self-portraits with the camera discovered, no identification is found on his person, mystifying the authorities as to who Chris...
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Chapter 4 - Detrital Wash

...Las Vegas, Chris returns to the desert to retrieve his backpack, but finds that his camera has been destroyed. Even so, he exuberantly writes in his journal that he has successfully...
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Chapter 7 – Carthage

Upon leaving, Chris gives Wayne his journal, photo album and leather belt for safekeeping, and tearfully says goodbye to Gail Borah, who senses...
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Chapter 18 - The Stampede Trail

...crawling into the bus for his final rest. In one of his last acts, Chris photographs himself. In the picture, Chris looks emaciated, but Krakauer believes he is at peace.
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